My Week '~board" Mystic Seaport's Charles W. Morgan by Jim Nordmann or one of the few times in the histo ry of Mystic Seaport, their flagshi p vessel, the famous whaling ship Charles W Morgan, is high and dry "o n the hard." The Morgan is currently in the museum'sdrydock undergoing a fi ve-year, $ 10-million resto ration rhatwill return this, rheon ly remaining wooden whaling ship in the wo rld, back to a seawo rthy and sailabl e condition by the summer of 2014. At the helm of the museum's Henry B. duPonr Preservatio n Shipyard and overseer of the restoration, is Q uentin Snediker, a fe llow alumnus of SUNY Mari rime College. I first met Quentin at a SUNY Mari ti me alumni meeting held in Mys tic Seaport in Jun e 2011. Quentin delivered a fascinating presentation on the Morgan's history and its restoration. H e explained that, because the twenty-firs t-century shipya rd time frame is much more generous than what the original shipbuilders had to contend with, they co uld rake rhe rime to both document the original fabric and construction derails full y and resto re the ship to a conditio n actually better than she would have had at her 1841 launch in New Bedford, Massach usetts. The Morgan's restoration benefits from the availabili ty of high technology, which includes laser telem etry and X-ray radiography, as well as computer-aided imaging of everything. In a strange twist of fare, it appears that the Morgan is rhe unintentional beneficiary of the old adage rhar says "it's an ill wind rhar doesn't blow so me good." The violent
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The C harles W. Morgan when she was still an active whaling vessel.
storms that ravaged rhe southern US since Hurri cane Katrina toppled many a tall hardwood tree and, in doing so, provided an unanticipated source fo r difficult-to-find shipbuildin g stock. Q uentin explained that as soon as the museum would learn rhar o ne of these big trees was down, the Seaport wo uld send out an inquiry to the city involved to see if the museum might acquire the wood from the downed tree. In most cases, the cities involved were very willing to donate the trees and we re actually pl eased to know that one of their historic
trees would live on as part of the res tored Morgan, rather than just be cur up and carted away. Quentin's message resonated with m e, as a graduate ofSUNY Maritime and a sailor. During his presentation, it dawned on m e how I cou ld help a fellow schoolmate and help a no r-for-profit organization at the same rime. It always seems that I have some unused vacatio n rime at rhe end of rhe year. I rho ugh r, what better use of that time than to donate it to a worthy cause? After he finished his talk, I ap proached him and asked, "Are yo u looking for volunteers?" Wirhour hesitation , the master shipbuilder said simply, "Sure!" My opportunity to serve "o n board" the Morgan cam e that December. I m ade it a point to work the same ho urs as the regular shipya rd staff. So, early o n the morning of5 D ecember, I made my way through a darkened shipyard, li t o nl y by rhe rising sun, to find the shipyard office. It was the start of their regular work week, and, at that time of the morning, rhe shipyard office serves as an impromptu coffee room and meeting place. Seated aro und rhe old wooden table Shipyard Director Quentin Snediker in Pass Christian, Mississippi, to select live oak trees felled by Hurricane Katrina.
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SEA HISTORY 143, SUMMER 2013